Contents

About the course

Following an induction at the University, you will start at your placement school at the beginning of their academic year. This will involve observing lessons and familiarising yourself with school campuses, alongside policies and procedures. In mid-September you will spend a block of time at the University working as part of a cohort of beginning teachers preparing for the year ahead.

From late September you will spend most of your time in your placement school with regular days returning to the University to further reflect on, and develop, your practice. During the first term you undertake a variety of tasks and observations and are gradually introduced to teaching your subject. You work closely with your school-based mentors and with your tutor who visits you in school.

You return to the University either side of your Christmas break. In this block of time you work with your peers, reflecting on your experiences in school and preparing for the next term.

During the spring term you complete a placement in a second school that promotes collaborative learning and broadens your experience.

During your placements post-Christmas you will return for several University-based days that focus on a wide range of professional development issues and allow for contact with peers and tutors.

As part of the programme you will undertake a school-based inquiry project where, working with others, you will formulate and develop a research project on an area of interest.

Interview process

There is a two stage process for the School Direct course.

The University of Nottingham screens your application and decides whether to offer you an interview. If you are offered an interview this will be at the University's School of Education. If you are successful at this interview you will then be interviewed by us.

When being interviewed at the University, there are likely to be other applicants being interviewed alongside you. They will be keen to see that you can work collaboratively with others. The criteria that will be used at interview to decide whether or not you are suitable for a place on the course are:

an awareness of current educational issues;

a realistic and positive view of schools and schooling;

an open and enquiring mind;

clear reasons for wanting to teach at the level for which you have applied;

motivation and commitment to teaching students of all levels of ability;

maturity and self confidence;

an appropriate level of subject knowledge in your chosen subject for secondary applicants.

If you are successful at interview at The University of Nottingham, there will then be a school based interview. This will include:

a subject knowledge, professional discussion

a formal interview

a student panel

the opportunity to tour the campuses, to get a feel for the ethos of the school and ensure that this is the right place for you to complete your training

How school placements work

Your main placement will be in your selected school. You will start at your placement school at the beginning of their academic year. There will be a number of days in university during the first term. As the term progresses, trainees will be in their placement school four days a week, and in university one day a week.

During the spring term you complete a five week placement in a second school that promotes collaborative learning and broadens your experience.

You will experience teaching students from age 11 to 18 during your placements

Fees

The course fees for 2019/2020 are as follows:

Student type

Fees to pay

UK students

£9,250

EU students

£9,250

Financial support

You could be eligible for either:

a scholarship of £28,000

a bursary of £26,000

To qualify for a scholarship you’ll need a degree of 2:1 or above in Physics or a related subject. For a bursary you’ll need a 2:2 or above in any subject.

You can’t claim both a bursary and a scholarship - you can only claim one.

Requirements

Qualifications

English Language and Mathematics at GCSE grade C or above, or an approved equivalent qualification.

Personal qualities

A desire to teach and work with young people

Effective communication skills

Determination to succeed

A readiness to listen and share

A flexible approach to learning and teaching

About the training provider

The de Ferrers Trust is a mixed multi-academy trust based in Staffordshire and Derbyshire. The trust currently consists of seven schools (three secondaries: The de Ferrers Academy, The Pingle Academy and Granville Academy, and four primaries: Eton Park Junior, Horninglow Primary, Lansdowne Infants and Richard Wakefield C.E. Primary Academy). The trust educates approximately 5000 children and young people between the ages of 3 and 19 and employs 600 members of staff. The Trust exists to ensure that all the children and young people in our care have the opportunity to fulfil their potential through achieving highly, regardless of their ability or background.

Within the Trust we have received both national and international recognition for the work we are currently doing on transforming teaching and learning through the use of Apple technology. The de Ferrers Academy is an Apple Regional Training Centre (RTC) and trainees from within the Trust will be provided with outstanding opportunities to access and develop their teaching in modern, forward thinking Academies. The de Ferrers Trust has a vision that all students within our care will eventually have access to a 1:1 iPad scheme.

Teacher training within The de Ferrers Trust affords a wide range of experiences. Our teacher training experience ensures that you receive the highest quality of training and support at school and Trust level.

Throughout your training at The de Ferrers Trust you will be working with a dedicated, hard-working team and you can expect a fully comprehensive induction and support programme.

Training with disabilities and other needs

We do not discriminate any candidate who has any form of disability. If successful we would make the necessary adjustments to facilitate employees to be able to carry out their role, examples such as:

lessons on the ground floor

support of appointments with external agencies

use of sound field system

Applicants should be aware that the de Ferrers Academy is a split site Academy and to access all of the required teaching experience to achieve QTS, inter-site travel is necessary during the school day.

We have staff who have a variety of disabilities, all these staff receive support through HR.

Support and advice

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